Modeling physical material more freely and making it move more
flexibly is a dream long sought after by human beings, and many artists have
created surreal illusions in pictures or moving images. But those were imaginary.
Can we obtain a real object that transforms as we designed it? <Protrude,
Flow>is an interactive installation which expresses the dynamics of fluid
motion of physical material, the dynamics of organic, wild shapes and movements
of liquid by means of digital computer control.

<Protrude, Flow> uses magnetic fluid, sound, and moving
images. Affected by the sounds and spectators' voices in the exhibition place,
the three-dimensional patterns of magnetic fluid transform in various ways,
and simultaneously its flowing movement and dynamic transformations are projected
on the wide screen.

The magnetic fluid appears as a black fluid. It is made by dissolving
ferro magnetic micro-powder in a solvent such as water or oil, and it remains
strongly magnetic even in the fluid condition. Therefore, it is more flexibly
transformable than iron sand and so it is possible to create more complicated
three-dimensional organic patterns. That appear occasionally as pointed mountains
or pliable organic shapes, sometimes as flowing particle streams.

The transformation of magnetic fluid is caused by the interaction
with environmental sound. The sounds in the exhibition place (sounds created
by artists, and voices of spectators) are caught by a microphone hanging from
the ceiling, and then a computer converts the sound amplitude to electromagnetic
voltage which determines the strength of the magnetic field. At the same time,
the magnetic fluid changes its three-dimensional patterns sequentially. Each
pattern appears synchronized to the environmental sound and the points of the
shapes move correspondingly. As a result, magnetic fluid pulsates according
to the sound. A digital video camera captures images of the moving magnetic
fluid, and projects it on the screen.

Following photoes were shoot in the early stage of <protrude,
flow> project. Without acrilic table, this work was produced in old West-6
building in UEC. After a while, we decided to put a round acrilc table for the
spectators.